Lorna's Laces Contest, Haymarket, and The Great American Aran KAL

 Last week, I briefly mentioned that Lorna's Laces is running a contest.  To fill you in more on this fantastic opportunity to win free yarn I thought I would tell you a bit more.  First off, let me congratulate Lorna's Laces for having a gorgeous sweater designed by Deborah Newton and knit up in their new Haymarket yarn make to the cover of the new Fall 2013 Vogue Knitting!!!


Isn't it just stunning!!!

This colorway is 51n Island Blue and that magnificent interlaced cable up the front is applied.  So all kinds of new fun with this project! Also, we just ordered the Island Blue color (it should be here shortly) AND we've created a kit for this sweater as well so you can get started right away!!!

There are two chances to win so here's the specifics in their own words right from the Lorna's Laces blog:

"I'll give the  first person who sends me a photo of their finished Applied Cable Fisherman's Rib Top  (that's a mouthful) up to a sweater's worth of yarn for their next project. And the first person who comes up to me at Rhinebeck wearing one will get the same." 

So get those needles moving!  Rhinebeck (aka New York State Sheep & Wool Festival and it's held in Rhinebeck NY, but most attendees just call it Rhinebeck) is only 2 months from now!!!

Speaking of Haymarket, this gives me a great opportunity to start talking about some of the wool fibers commonly found in yarn shops!  What is Haymarket?  It is the latest yarn base from Lorna's Laces.  It is a single spun strand of 100% Bluefaced Leicester wool, 215 yd/100g, dyed up in the wonderful Lorna's colorways!  Now, this one is NOT superwash so handwash and lay flat to dry or dry clean.

You've probably started to see a number of yarns that are made from Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) and are wondering what a Bluefaced Leicester is!  Well it is a breed of sheep, originally from Northumberland County, England.  This is in the far north, on the Scottish border.  It is a large, handsome sheep with no wool on it's face and neck and a very roman nose.  The skin under the short hairs of the face is blue, this is where the blue faced part comes in.  It is a multipurpose breed in what growers call the Longwool breed category.  Multipurpose means it is an animal used for food, fiber, and for it's crossbreeding suitability to maintain hybrid vigor in the offspring.

The fleece of the Bluefaced Leicester has a staple length of 3- 6” (staple length means the length of the wool), a fleece weight of 3 to 6 lbs., and a fiber diameter of 56s – 60s count, or 24-28 microns, creating high quality lustrous yarns with beautiful drape. (I'll go into spinning counts and microns in a future post.)  Suffice it say at this point that this wool is not quite as fine and soft as merino wool but still soft enough for sweaters, hats and scarves.  It will also be slightly more resistant to felting than merino wool but should still felt beautifully. The fiber also take dye very well giving some very vibrant tones. As a spinning fiber it is an excellent choice for a beginner.  If you want to find out more about this breed of sheep you can go to the Bluefaced Leicesters Breeder Association for more details.

Haymarket would be another excellent yarn to use for your Great American Aran Afghan too! Don't forget, we're starting our first square next week and everyone online or local is welcome to join!  Feel free to begin posting in the Ravelry thread for this KAL too. 

Here is the info for the first square again: we will start with the square on page 22 of the book, designed by Carol Adams.

Supplies need will be:

-The Great American Aran Afghan book
-1 hank of worsted weight yarn
-Size US 6 (4mm) straight or 24" circular needle
-Cable needle
-stitch markers are helpful but not required


Gauge for all squares will average 19 st to 4" (10 cm) over stockinette on size US 7 (4.5 mm) needles.

When the owners of Cascade yarns were visiting us last week we realized that Cascade Cloud would also be an awesome choice for this project.  These chain construction of this wool & alpaca yarn will give fantastic stitch definition!  I've decided I'll do mine from the new Cascade Longwood!

Sunday, August 25th will be the first class in the local shop but I'm available by email whenever you need help or get stuck.  Just send an email to askTerry (at) jimmybeanswool (dot) com.

It's cable mania time!!! ;D
Terry